On Tuesday, the NBA announced its three All-NBA teams.
League MVP Nikola Jokic was selected as the center of the All-NBA First Team, while former two-time MVP Giannis Antetokounmpo is one of the forwards and Dallas Mavericks sensation Luka Doncic is at one guard.
The 2021-22 All-NBA First Team is in. pic.twitter.com/fce2zW2HwX
— NBA on TNT (@NBAonTNT) May 25, 2022
But the other two selections are questionable.
The Boston Celtics’ Jayson Tatum was chosen as the other forward over Kevin Durant and LeBron James, while Devin Booker of the Phoenix Suns got the second guard spot.
Booker certainly had a very strong year, averaging 26.8 points, 5.0 rebounds, and 4.8 assists per game while helping to propel the Suns to the NBA’s best record.
He is one of the game’s best one-on-one players, as well as one of the best mid-range scorers, and he can get as hot as anyone.
But did Booker truly deserve the honor he got?
Booker Didn’t Play Like An All-NBA First Team Selection When The Suns Really Needed Him To
In last year’s playoffs, Booker was sensational, putting up 27.3 points a game as he helped Phoenix reach the NBA Finals.
But in this year’s postseason, he left something to be desired.
When his Suns took a 3-2 lead in the Western Conference semifinals over the Mavs with a 30-point rout, Booker had 28 points just two days after he poured in 35 points.
It looked like a trip to the conference finals was inevitable for Phoenix.
But it lost Game 6 in Texas by 27 points, as Booker was held to 19 points on 6-of-17 shooting from the field and 0-of-4 from 3-point range.
Then came a Game 7 that will live in infamy for as long as the city of Phoenix exists.
The Suns lost on their home court by 33 points, and Booker went 3-of-14 while scoring just 11 points in 37 minutes.
NBA Twitter watching Chris Paul and Devin Booker combine for 3 points in the first half of Game 7 pic.twitter.com/CJgMhr75So
— Rich (@UptownDC_Rich) May 16, 2022
Doncic, meanwhile, shined brightly with 35 points on 12-of-19 accuracy from the field.
When Antetokounmpo’s Milwaukee Bucks dropped their Game 7 to the Celtics, he may have shot 10-of-26, but he still managed to score 25 points while also grabbing 20 rebounds and dishing off nine assists.
Antetokounmpo went down kicking and screaming, while Booker seemingly went down in total submission and compliance.
That is not how an All-NBA First Team selection is supposed to end his season.
Who Should’ve Taken His Place?
It seems like the usual designation of one point guard and one shooting guard doesn’t matter when it comes to picking the All-NBA teams, as Stephen Curry and Ja Morant, both of whom are point guards, make up the backcourt of the second team.
If the other guard on the first team had to be an off-guard, one could’ve gone with the Utah Jazz’s Donovan Mitchell, who played more of his minutes at the 2 than the 1 this season.
Mitchell averaged 25.9 points and 5.3 assists per game, and he scored at least 30 points on 23 occasions this season, as well as three straight playoff games of at least 32 points.
Morant and Curry would’ve also been good options, although Curry’s shooting percentages were a bit off this year.
Or how about the Atlanta Hawks’ Trae Young, who put up 28.4 points on 46.0 percent overall shooting and 38.2 percent from downtown, along with 9.7 assists per game?
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